Pieces
by MiyuTanemura
Summary: A calm night ends up as a nightmare for Lucy.
1. First Night

Disclaimer: Fairy Tail's not mine

**

* * *

Pieces**

This couldn't be happening!

Lucy curled further, trying to protect herself from the objects that kept falling around her, hitting her arms (that were protecting her face) and her legs. The sound of glass and china crashing on the floor reached her ears at the same time that hurtful words pierced her.

She thought about moving her hands to cover her ears but then her face would, most likely, be cut by the flying bits of china that were surrounding her.

At the same time that this was happening she couldn't help but remember the events from moments ago, trying to find some way out and berating herself for not noticing things at the right time and fleeing the kitchen when she could.

It had started as quite a normal night. Well, this one was a bit out of the average as her father had given the night off to all the employees. He had been doing that lately, at random times. So, Lucy was alone at the mansion – alone with her father, that is.

She had come to the kitchen to eat and drink something before going to sleep. She had poured milk to her favorite tumbler and was about to grab a couple of Mrs. Spet's marvelous sandwiches before returning to her room.

She had no time to do such thing.

From one of the kitchen's doors a male voice cut the silence.

She was taken by surprise so, with a slight jump, she turned around. It could only be one person really but she was surprised to see her father there.

He entered the kitchen fully and, as he was wobbling a little, he paused to steady himself in one of the counters that was by the door.

Lucy was shocked to see that he was very drunk. Her father didn't do more than social drinking… then, why was he like this? Looking at her with contempt. She didn't like this one bit but little she know that the bad part had yet to come.

The man caught himself and started yelling at her, telling Lucy how ashamed of her he was, how everything that went wrong was her fault.

She looked at him with wide eyes, mouth falling open but no sound coming out.

Her father started pacing from one side to the other, walking the length of the large dinner table that was in the middle of the kitchen. Then he came to a stop a few steps from Lucy. A sudden silence fell upon the kitchen but it was so heavy that Lucy had trouble breathing. She tightened her hold on the finely decorated jug of milk that she had been about to put back on the rightful place.

The moment of tension was broken when her father got close to her in two strides and punched it. The jug flew through the air before crashing on the floor, splashing milk all over the place, even dirtying the bottom of Lucy's nightgown.

Then he grabbed the front of her robe and shook it violently while he all but yelled at her.

Lucy felt completely helpless, she couldn't do anything to stop this and for moments she feared that he was going to hit her.

He didn't hit her but let go of her, making her fall back and slip on the wet floor, ending up sprawled on it. She even knocked her head in the corner of the counter, she could feel something dribbling down from her forehead. She didn't dare to move her hand to see what it was – blood, she was sure of it – in fear of attracting too much attention upon her.

At least for the moment the man's rage wasn't directed at her.

'Maybe I thought about it too early…' was her bitter thought instants later when the contents of the cupboards (glasses, dishes, etc) crashed around her, each bit flying closer and closer to her until they seemed to be raining on her.

He kept yelling and Lucy wondered if there was any way for her to leave this hellish place, at the same time that Lucy tried to shrink so that she was a smaller target.

Then, there it was, an opening.

He had just turned around to get more ammunition so the way to the door was clear.

Lucy got up and ran as fast as she could, not caring that her feet were bleeding from cuts caused by the pointy pieces of china that littered the kitchen's floor. It didn't matter that she was bleeding from her forehead or that the sweat was prickling at that wound and giving her a burning feeling. She could still hear him screaming, almost as if he was right behind her and that made her push herself even harder.

She ran up the majestic staircase, the blood from her feet making her skid uncertainly at some point but she couldn't slow down nor stop, no – not yet. Not until she got to her haven.

There it was, the sturdy dark wood greeted her fingers and she stumbled to her dark room.

She hurriedly closed the door and locked it. That's when her legs lost their strength and she slid to the floor.

There she wept, bitter, anguished tears.

As time went by the sounds coming from her became even more heart wrenching but it was to no use.

She was alone and that was it.

Nothing was going to be the same as before…

Outside, the moon that had been shining so brightly, as if responding to Lucy's laments, was covered by dark clouds and soon after, rain was falling down heavily.

What Lucy didn't know was that the worst had yet to come…

**

* * *

A/N:** Well, this is just a small drabble that became a bit angsty but now I'm feeling much better. There's nothing like fanfiction to get rid of a bad funk.

(-.-') I know that the time of the action is uncertain but think of this when Lucy hasn't emancipated yet.

Anyway, hope you liked it… Please review. :)

P.S.- This was meant to be just a one-shot but I think I'm continue to write, even if irregularly, so look forward to an update (when inspiration strikes...) ;D


	2. Off Balance

Disclaimer: Not very inspired to say something witty so, not mine

* * *

2. Off Balance

A soft knock on the door woke Lucy from where she had fallen asleep. She had slept huddled against the door, an uncomfortable sleep when exhaustion took over her.

Blinking bleary eyes, she sat up, a little disoriented. Then the aches from the previous night crashed upon her. She stifled a grunt of pain as another knock was heard, a female voice calling out, "Miss Lucy, it's time to wake up. May I come in?"

It was Tilai, as always, performing their usual morning ritual. Lucy cleared her throat and said back, "I'm awake! I'm coming in a minute…" The sound of the soft footfalls moving made her sigh. She let her forehead rest against the floor. 'At least that came out more steady than I expected…'

Slowly, she crawled to the contiguous bathroom. As every piece of her body ached she had to go even slower. When she finally got to her destination she leaned heavily against the bathtub. Pulling the med-kit from the cabinet under the sink, Lucy worked on her feet, taking off the tiny pieces that were embedded amidst the dry blood at the same time that she grimaced in pain. She cleaned her feet and bandaged them. That's when she faced her first hurdle of the day. 'And how am I supposed to stand now? I doubt that my feet will be able to stand my weight.' She gripped the sink tightly and stood up slowly. A pained yelp escaped her lips as she lost her balance and almost fell to the floor again.

This was already taking too long… Soon they would send someone up here to escort her to the dinner room and see her in this pitiful state. She was not about to worry everybody from the household so she better hurry. She walked back to her room – a bit unsteadily – and sat on the large bed, feeling it bounce slightly with her weight. She let out a small giggle, remembering all the fun stuff that she had shared with her friends back in the day. Now, everything had changed as they had grown up. Bad things had happened, sad things also and an invisible wall that hadn't been there before had started to grow, leaving Lucy more and more isolated. There were lots of people here, with whom she had grown and that she loved them immensely but she knew that the small yet immense difference was there. So she had everybody at arm's length – all the time. Her hopes at having a friend in which she could rely had already been crushed and, at the time, that had been a particularly hard blow for her to deal with.

Lucy shook her head in hopes to dissipate these bad thoughts. She was not going to be able to survive this day if she started it with a defeated attitude. No! She was going down there and act normally. She was stronger than that and it wasn't going to be a thing like the previous night that was going to defeat her. She got up slowly and headed to the closet where she started rummaging through the clothes. It was amazing how it seemed like the closet knew her mood and presented her the suitable clothes for each occasion. It was like… magic…

Lucy grabbed one of her favorite light blue shirts and assorted it with a comfortable pair of black pants. Then she found a pair of really fluffy slippers and put them on. It was hardly a dignified look but she had attained her goal – wearing clothes that made her feel comfortable and safe, at least with the familiarity.

* * *

She walked calmly to the dinning room and sat on the other end of the large table, as usual. She wasn't feeling very hungry and just the fact that she was in the same room with – him – made her stomach churn in an unpleasant way…

"Lucy, aren't you feeling well?" these words directed at her startled Lucy from her thoughts and her current action of turning the bread into crumbs.

"Excuse me?" she asked dumbly.

"You haven't eaten anything yet." The man stated with what could be considered concern.

Lucy blinked several times as if trying to make sense of that sentence. 'How can he be asking me that and behaving as if nothing had happened?' The whole environment looked and felt completely familiar and normal but since the previous night, she wasn't about to trust any words. "I'm… I'm fine, just not hungry. May I be excused?" at the small assent she got up and walked with what she hoped was decision and not an attempt of a panicky run.

She didn't return to her room, no, she was going to her secret haven in the gardens. It had been quite a while since she had been there and she could use the space to think.

Lucy headed straight t the kitchen as it was her usual path but then she remembered. Stopping immediately she shifted her weight from foot to foot, in indecision. A sudden sense of fear was sprouting from her. She took a step towards the kitchen to recede two while shaking her head slightly. This was something that she couldn't face, no, not today…

Turning back she went to one of the immense living rooms that had large windowed doors and that headed to the back garden.

As far as she could see the day was running smoothly for everybody, several employees were outside tending the gardens. As she walked Lucy was grumbling under her breath as she could be farther ahead if she had gone straight through the kitchen. But she really couldn't. Even if the kitchen had to be bustling with activity, as much as it comforted her, it was 'tainted' with the prior night's events so she really couldn't _go_ there.

Shrugging off these thoughts Lucy crossed the first garden, greeting people back distractedly. When she got to the tamed grove that they had before the maze, she let go of a sigh. She went straight to her 'secret path' that wasn't almost ever used and came to a stop under one of the willows. To this one she used to call 'The enchanted door' as it was the tree that covered the entrance to her haven. Taking the last couple of steps she brushed off the willow's leaves that were surrounding her, squinting as the lazy sun proved to be too much for her eyes. When she felt comfortable she opened them gradually and took a look around.

Her secret garden was the same as always – and she knew that she could relax here.

Walking to the bench she grabbed the blanket that was hidden amidst the foliage, sat down and covered herself as she felt a little chilly.

With a small sigh she leaned on the wall and looked up. The light-blue sky seemed to be even more distant than usual. That and the foliage walls were also immense. Or maybe this was just a trick created by her sight? Never mind that.

Then she noticed something else, where were the flowers? There used to be small clusters of colorful flowers, here and there, and that brought a little bit of liveliness to the place.

Then she remembered.

That was before, when things were good, not like they were now.

Lucy felt tears threatening to fall from her eyes once again but she blinked them back. 'I thought I had already cried all the tears that I had. Come on, Lucy. Pull yourself together…' she tried to shake herself out of it, in vain.

Surrendering to the loneliness and despair once again Lucy curled up in the blanket and looked at the sky, thinking about the unfairness and solitude.

'Where are you, mother? Now that I need you so much…'

The rustling of the foliage around her almost drowned her sobs.

**

* * *

A/N:** Hey! So, I had a little bit of time and wrote this like that. It's still very depressing but I still don't have this story completely thought out so for now I'll just take things slow.

I hope you appreciate the story (by the way, thanks for the feedback) and, if possible, leave a review. ^^


End file.
